Look East | A Hozier Fanfiction |

11

Sun streamed through the window, hitting Andrew squarely in the eye. He winced, inhaled sharply, and made to turn away. Then he realized he wasn't alone. For a brief second, he forgot where he was. He opened his eyes slowly, taking in the room in small bits.

The peeling grey wallpaper. The trees swaying outside the window. The dated paintings on the walls. The sofa that looked like it fell out of the seventies. The smell of burning wood lingered in the air and the tip of his nose was cold. Then he remembered.

Molly lay next to him, still asleep. In the cold of the night, she had snuggled up against his chest , hair tumbling across the blanket underneath her. He remembered the storm that raged for most of the night. Beans on toast in front of the fireplace. The way she felt against his body as they had moved together. The way the cold night chilled his body as they settled in to sleep.

He saw that the fire had burned down in the fireplace and the room had gotten cold. He shivered a little as he got up, gently edging his way around Molly. He pulled on his boxers and hustled to the toilet. The cold air brought goosebumps out on his skin and he actually gasped when the frigid water hit his hands under the tap.

He hurried back to the lounge room and pulled a sweater over his head from his suitcase. The embers in the fire came to life slowly when he blew on them. Within a few short minutes, he had a small fire going and his hands began to defrost. He sat in front of it, feeding smaller logs into the fire from the basket on the side of the fireplace. He felt Molly begin to stir behind him and he turned around.

"Jesus fuck its cold!" she gasped as she stretched her arms over her head. "I thought it was supposed to be summer time."

"It is," he chuckled. "But the air here is cooler from the ocean. You said that when we were camping."

"I know," she groaned. "But I never expect it."

"Come over by the fire," he said, tapping the carpet next to him. "You'll warm up faster."

She moved across their makeshift bed and settled next to him, wrapping one of the blankets around her shoulders and pulling her knees into her chest. After a yawn, she looked up at him.

"What's the plan for today?" she asked.

"I figured we'd go out for breakfast - assuming the town hasn't been blown up the coast - and maybe explore the island a bit," Andrew replied. "That sound good?"

She smiled. "Absolutely. Do you know if the electricity's back on yet?"

He shook his head. "Haven't checked." He leaned over and turned the switch for a nearby lamp. It flickered to life. "There you have it," he said. "Back in the twenty-first century."

Another smile lit up her face. "Good. You can turn the heat on while I shower."

He watched her go, a blanket wrapped around her body. Her slim shoulders peeked out above the edge of the blanket and he was briefly flooded with images of his hands and lips on her skin. He was half tempted to follow her, but the day was wasting and he didn't want to spend all of it inside. Instead, he wandered through the house to find the thermostat and cranked the heat.

Pipes rattled as hot water rushed through the house to radiators. He heard the shower running and took the opportunity to change his clothes. He was halfway through pulling his shirt over his head when he heard an appreciative whistle.

A blush rose in his cheeks and flooded down his neck. "What?"

"You're sexy," she remarked. "In a nerdy, geeky, lanky kind of way."